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kevin_shepherd's review against another edition
4.0
“I demand that a film express either the joy of making cinema or the agony of making cinema. I am not at all interested in anything in between.” ~Roger Ebert, The 400 Blows
“It does not hook its effects on specific plot points, nor does it ask us to identify with Dave Bowman or any other character. It says to us: We became men when we learned to think. Our minds have given us the tools to understand where we live and who we are. Now it is time to move on to the next step, to know that we live not on a planet, but among the stars, and that we are not flesh, but intelligence.” ~Roger Ebert, 2001: A Space Odyssey
Known as a humanist and a populist, Roger Ebert critiqued films from 1967 to 2013. That’s 46 years of bearing witness to the best (and worst) of world cinema. These reviews are some of his best.
“It does not hook its effects on specific plot points, nor does it ask us to identify with Dave Bowman or any other character. It says to us: We became men when we learned to think. Our minds have given us the tools to understand where we live and who we are. Now it is time to move on to the next step, to know that we live not on a planet, but among the stars, and that we are not flesh, but intelligence.” ~Roger Ebert, 2001: A Space Odyssey
Known as a humanist and a populist, Roger Ebert critiqued films from 1967 to 2013. That’s 46 years of bearing witness to the best (and worst) of world cinema. These reviews are some of his best.
scheu's review against another edition
4.0
It was a great pleasure to read Ebert's thoughtful essays on these films, even for the ones that are very much not to my taste (Fellini). Looking forward to the other two volumes.
thomaspfarmer's review against another edition
Read through all the films I've seen. I'll try and check back every so often when/if I catch some of the others listed. Always a fan of Ebert and the way he writes about the power and connectivity of film. A nice edition to the coffee table or back-of-the toilet curation.
rosemarieshort's review against another edition
5.0
Roger Ebert came to my attention through Wikipedia. In most cases I often scroll straight past the synopsis when I'm unsure as to whether to bother with a film, instead resorting to the Critical Response section. In almost every instance of these sections pre late 2013 you will find some sort of quote from Ebert. He was a critic who was always fair whilst being sharply, intensively critical and appreciated film like no other. Reading this book was a delight, with each movie getting two to three pages of critique, accompanied by a representative screen cap for each. His adoration for these, films he considers to be the best, is latent and infects the reader with enthusiasm. He was a hero of mine (I was always pleased at how often, though no always, our opinions matched) and as the only movie critic to date to win a Pulitzer Prize...well, you can imagine. His words are well thought out and writing style easy to enjoy. Cannot recommend this enough.
breerashel's review against another edition
2.0
While I agreed with a few of the reviews in the book, I found my attention wandering during the whole of the book. Roger Ebert writes as if he were a college professor of film which makes for a boring book. He makes even the most exciting movie sound boring. He talks quite a bit about the technical details of the movies that he lists when I would rather hear about why he appreciated the plot and acting abilities of the actors/actresses. He does mention those things but sense I am not nor have I ever been a film student it is difficult for me to comprehend many of the points that he makes about many of the films. I think that this book would be great for film students but it just wasn't something that I enjoyed. I love movies but his writing makes me want to read more rather than watch a movie. He makes movies sound dull. I also disagreed with many of his choices such as Citizen Kane. I will never understand why some people love that movie so much. I think that it is overrated and dull.
To be fair, I knew that I was going to disagree with many of his opinions which is why I picked The Greatest Movies to represent my nonfiction you feel you will disagree with category for the reading challenge I am participating in. Roger Ebert is famous for trashing movies and having controversial views. He either seems to like things that others think are awful or hate things that other people enjoy.
https://fictionedtodeath.blogspot.com/2019/05/the-great-movies-great-movies-by-roger.html
To be fair, I knew that I was going to disagree with many of his opinions which is why I picked The Greatest Movies to represent my nonfiction you feel you will disagree with category for the reading challenge I am participating in. Roger Ebert is famous for trashing movies and having controversial views. He either seems to like things that others think are awful or hate things that other people enjoy.
https://fictionedtodeath.blogspot.com/2019/05/the-great-movies-great-movies-by-roger.html
mtbunker's review against another edition
informative
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
jmarryott23's review against another edition
4.0
*I read the chapters for movies that I’ve seen, which is a little less than half of the 100. I’m somewhat of a film buff but the fact I had seen only about 45 of the movies shows how deep into film lore Ebert goes. But I guess that makes it fun - he isn’t just saying these are the best/most popular movies, he sometimes picks obscure movies to bring light to them*
This was so great because the write ups within weren’t standard reviews - they were a deeper analysis that often expected you to have seen and remembered the movie. There are spoilers throughout, which is something film reviewers so often have to avoid and thus can’t go in-depth when reviewing at release.
You feel like you are watching the movies with Ebert. You can feel his love of cinema constantly by the way he discusses the films. I learned a lot, both behind the scenes and in things within the films that you could easily miss. I didn’t always agree with Ebert, but I always respected what his opinion was - it carried weight and it still does after his passing. I will read the other iterations of Great Movies.
This was so great because the write ups within weren’t standard reviews - they were a deeper analysis that often expected you to have seen and remembered the movie. There are spoilers throughout, which is something film reviewers so often have to avoid and thus can’t go in-depth when reviewing at release.
You feel like you are watching the movies with Ebert. You can feel his love of cinema constantly by the way he discusses the films. I learned a lot, both behind the scenes and in things within the films that you could easily miss. I didn’t always agree with Ebert, but I always respected what his opinion was - it carried weight and it still does after his passing. I will read the other iterations of Great Movies.
yaki78's review against another edition
3.0
Started with reading every movie, even if I hadnt seen it. But then I realised it wasnt adding much value. For the movies I had seen, it was a new perspective. Ebert is def one of the finest observers of cinema!
baxtervallens's review against another edition
emotional
funny
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
5.0